A type of Chinese milk candy has been taken off the shelves at one of Rotorua's Asian supermarkets as a precaution after it was found to be tainted with melamine overseas.
White Rabbit Creamy Candy was found to be contaminated with the chemical after tests in Singapore and
has been reportedly banned overseas, but the New Zealand Food Safety Authority says melamine has not been detected in New Zealand.
However, the authority agreed to test the product after it was found in Chinese supermarkets in Auckland.
Bags of the milk lollies were being sold at Rotorua's NewSave Asian Fresh Supermarket on Hinemoa St until yesterday.
A visit to the store by The Daily Post prompted the shop attendant to contact the Hamilton-based owner Jenny Jin. After hearing about the concerns about the possible presence of melamine, she decided to pull the lollies from the shelves.
Mrs Jin, who also owns four other Asian supermarkets in Hamilton and Auckland, said she was shocked when she heard the lollies had contained melamine overseas and would be recalled here.
Her Rotorua supermarket had five bags, which contained 30 to 50 lollies each, and cost $5.80.
Mrs Jin said although there had been no evidence of melamine in the lollies she was concerned enough to recall them. She said most of the products sold her in her stores were imported from Korea and Japan and the Rotorua supermarket had no other Chinese-made milk products, apart from the lollies.
Rotorua's two other Asian supermarkets, Multi Asian Dairy on Pukuatua St and Asian Grocery on Hinemoa St, do not sell the lollies or any other Chinese milk products.
The Food Safety Authority's deputy chief executive, Sandra Daly, said she wasn't aware of the overseas ban and there were no plans to recall the sweets or remove them from shop shelves in New Zealand.
"That would just be a knee-jerk reaction and also, we have not found any of the Chinese products tested contain melamine," she said.
Bay of Plenty medical officer of health Phil Shoemack said people should not over-react and the situation needed to be put into perspective. "Sweets can do harm to kids' teeth every day."
Dr Shoemack said it could be that there were only traces of the milk product in the sweet and he questioned whether anyone had become sick overseas as a result of eating the lollies.
However, he said it was sensible for people to not eat the lollies until they were found to be safe.
Ms Daly said it was difficult for laboratories to test products which were not liquid or powder for melamine.
China's tainted-milk scandal started after milk powder sold by New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra's Chinese partner San Lu was found to be contaminated with melamine, and has become a global food scare.
In China, four babies have died and nearly 13,00 have been hospitalised with kidney problems. Of these, China's health ministry says, 104 are in serious condition.
Hospitals throughout China had seen almost 40,000 infants and 1579 babies had been discharged, the ministry said. Additional reporting NZPA
A type of Chinese milk candy has been taken off the shelves at one of Rotorua's Asian supermarkets as a precaution after it was found to be tainted with melamine overseas.
White Rabbit Creamy Candy was found to be contaminated with the chemical after tests in Singapore and
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